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Media

Submission + - NYTimes Editorial Says Science Is a Religion (nytimes.com) 1

Submitted by jeffporcaro
jeffporcaro writes: Paul Davies writes a guest editorial in the NYTimes (sorry, but that's where it is) in which he shares his opinion that science is no better/no different than religion, since it forces its adherents to take items on faith. Examples he gives of faith-based science include our belief that the laws of physics will not change tomorrow and the idea that there are multiple universes — both are non-falsifiable and therefore no better than religious faith. Similarly, the fact that fundamental concepts are not fully explained (Why are the laws that regulate motion the way that they are? Who/what made them that way?) proves to him that science is based on a faulty, "deeply anti-rational" foundation. See here for full story.
Security

Submission + - How Can I Make A Secure Phone Call?

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: It is becoming increasingly difficult to convince myself that I should continue walking around while wearing a mobile tracking device and a mobile audio bug. That said, I'd like to be able to use the phone, and I'd occasionally like to be able to use it in places that aren't my home. Is this possible to do securely? The best thing that I can think of is to somehow run zfone on a mobile wifi handset. Or perhaps on a smartphone with the SIM card removed? Is this possible? Has anyone had any success with this, or have any recommendations on ways to make mobile secure calls and avoid being tracked?
Biotech

Submission + - U of A team wins prize for creating E.Coli Biofuel (ualberta.ca)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The University of Alberta ButaNerds have taken first prize in the energy category at an international genetic engineering competition at MIT in Cambridge, Mass. The U of A team is using E. coli bacteria to produce butanol, a biofuel that could one day replace gasoline. Butanol also cuts down on greenhouse gas emissions and takes food crops out of the equation in the development of biofuels. Teams from 59 universities from around the world took part in the International Genetically Engineered Machine competition, which invites researchers from all over the world to address the question: Can simple biological systems be built from standard, interchangeable parts and operated in living cells?
Portables (Apple)

Submission + - why Linux Community Didn't Come Up With iPhone?

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Lately, there seems to an explosion of interest in Open Source. I suppose it is a natural progression. When interest in something grows, its level of recognition expands exponentially as more and more people become aware. It seems the scientific community is also starting to take note — not necessarily of the software, but of the way in which Open Source community functions.At this time a question arise in my mind-Why linux community doesnt comeup with iphone?This blog story will clarify my doubts.
Microsoft

Submission + - What Will Windows 7 Bring to the Table After Windo

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: With Windows Vista far from being the last mammoth release of the Windows operating system as we know it, Microsoft is increasingly focusing on Windows 7. Stripped down of its Vienna codename, following the development strategy implemented by Steven Sinofsky, Senior Vice President, Windows and Windows Live Engineering Group, debuted with the introduction of product numbers, Windows 7 is currently set for 2010, in both 32-bit and 64-bit flavors. At the same time, there are generally only scarce details related to Windows 7 available, most of which do not benefit from any official confirmation from Microsoft.
Emulation (Games)

Submission + - Apple Ignoring Game Developers 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: When Valve called Apple out for not taking games and game developers seriously, nobody really paid much attention. Despite Valve's offerings in terms of games, they never really did anything for the Mac and so these were seen as outside comments. Between this and the later news about the large amount of money asked by the company for a Mac port of Half-Life 2, the arguments just weren't that convincing. Now, longtime Mac developer id software is singing the same song.
                        John Carmack has criticized Apple for its game related decisions, concluding that the company simply does not get this market. Despite joining Jobs on stage at WWDC, to renew his studio's commitment to the platform, the legendary game developer is not very optimistic about gaming on the Mac.
Internet Explorer

Submission + - The Campaign to End Internet Explorer 6 (end6.org)

Submitted by zip6
zip6 writes: Ever work on a site and wonder, "Why am I doing horrible things to the code to make this work in IE6 when IE7 has been out for a year and yet 43% of the net public still use it?" Yeah, me too. Thus the reason for End6! A simple JavaScript function from a simple site to try and get rid of this thing once and for all.
Education

Submission + - Screen Recording Software Options

Submitted by pipingguy
pipingguy writes: I'd like to use screen recording software to create Flash movies in order to create tutorials. So far I've found Camtasia Studio (relatively expensive), Bulent's Screen Recorder 4 (reasonably priced) and CamStudio (open source). My questions to those who have experience with doing this sort of thing: Are there other programs worth considering? What are the pros and cons of the ones I've mentioned? Thanks for any help.
The Almighty Buck

Submission + - The 110 Million Dollar Button

Submitted by
Reservoir Hill
Reservoir Hill writes: "The "I'm Feeling Lucky" button on Google's search page may cost the company up to $110 million in lost ad revenue every year according to a report in American Public Media's Marketplace. Tom Chavez says that since the company makes money selling ads on its search results page, the 1% of users who use the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button never see Google's ads because the button automatically directs them to a non-Google site reducing Google's ad revenue. So why does Google keep the button? Marisa Mayer, Google's vice president responsible for everything on the search page, says that "it's possible just to become too dry, too corporate, too much about making money" and the "I'm Feeling Lucky," button reminds you that "people here have personality." Web usability expert Jacob Nielsen says the whimsy serves another business purpose: "Oh we're just two kind of grad students hanging out and having a beer and having a grand old time," not you know, "We are 16,000 people working on undermining your privacy.""
Wireless Networking

Submission + - WiFi Banned at University for Years to Come

Submitted by
An anonymous reader writes: Dr. Fred Gilbert, president of Lakehead University, recently held a presentation as to why his university will continue to have a wireless networking ban in place for years to come. Here is a transcript of his presentation.
Security

Submission + - Protecting IM from the NSA, a Canadian's view 3

Submitted by
holden
holden writes: "Ian Goldberg, leading security researcher, professor at the university of waterloo, cypherpunk and co-creator of the Off-the-Record Messaging (OTR) protocol recently gave a talk on protecting your IM conversations. He discusses OTR and its importance in today's world with warrant-less wire tapping and all that bad stuff. With OTR users benefit from being able to have truly private conversations over IM, by using encryption to obtain authentication, deniability, and perfect forward secrecy, while working within their existing IM infrastructure. With the recent NSA wiretapping activities and increasing Big Brother presence, security and OTR are increasingly important. An avi of the talk is available by http as well as by bittorrent and a bunch of other formats."
Microsoft

Submission + - Researchers blast Vista Service Pack 1

Submitted by Stony Stevenson
Stony Stevenson writes: A group of researchers has described Microsoft's upcoming Windows Vista Service Pack 1 as a "performance dud". Researchers from the EXO Performance Network claimed that a series of in-house benchmark tests showed that users hoping to receive a speed boost from the update will be disappointed. "After extensive testing of Release To Manufacture and SP1-patched versions of Vista it seems clear that the hoped-for performance fixes that Microsoft has been hinting at have not materialised," the group said.
The Internet

Submission + - Film Shows Evidence of Imminent World Government

Submitted by
An anonymous reader writes: This two hour movie contains the most startling and conclusive evidence that the world, as portrayed by global media, is a lie.

"Zeitgeist was created as a non-profit filmiac expression to inspire people to start looking at the world from a more critical perspective and to understand that very often things are not what the population at large think they are. The information in Zeitgeist was established over a year long period of research and the current Source page on this site lists the basic sources used / referenced.
...it's important to point out that there is a tendency to simply disbelieve things that are counter to our understanding, without the necessary research performed. However, if one takes the time to read the sources provided, they will find that what is being presented is based on documented evidence."

It is a documentary about Religion, Terrorism, and Money. It melds known facts with obscure ones, and paints a picture of how things are, and how they could be. Everyone who cares about the world should watch this, and think about what it means to them.
In any other age, this information would have been buried. This film showcases the power of the internet, and true value of information, and what freedom really means.

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